New Beginnings

by Iris Blobel

  Sophie continued. “Father Mahoney said he remembered it so clearly, as it was the first time his son had asked for a favour. The very first time, and he had only asked for a prayer.” She ended the sentence with a sigh. “Zach must’ve mentioned to his father that he’d often sat with Clara in front of the telly, watching old movies, especially when she’d had a lousy day after treatments. On those dreadful days, she would also feel bad for the child her ex-husband had fathered that was out there on its own. So that’s when Father Mahoney rang her and told her about us.”

  “Just like that?” Mark asked.

  She slowly moved her head up and down. “Yup. Just like that.”

  She felt Mark’s stare on her. “Weird how life turns out sometimes, isn’t it?” she whispered.

  He gave a slow nod and leaned in to kiss her. “I’m really glad the way your life’s turned out, because at the moment that makes me about the luckiest man around.”

  Placing her hand on his cheek, she said, “I’m so glad you’re in my life.”

  “I believe,” he whispered with a husky voice as he brushed his thumb over her lips. “It’s time to introduce you to my bed. He replaced his thumb with his mouth and proceeded to tease her with kisses from her lips to her cheek, her jaw, before stopping to spend some time along that soft part of her neck just below her ear.

  Sophie closed her eyes and let herself go, knowing it was going to be another long night.

  Chapter Eighteen

  The next day turned out to be a long day for Sophie, and she was tired. Considering the early start in the morning, she had a quick shower, while Mark quickly organised a few calls. As soon as the hot spray hit her body, a soothing warmth spread through her, easing the excitement of the day away. She would’ve liked to stand under the water for much longer, but knew not to because of the water restrictions in town.

  Wrapping a towel around herself, she stepped out, enjoying the thought of standing in Mark’s bathroom. Almost naked. Which brought on a rush of body-engulfing heat as she remembered the previous night. He’d focussed entirely on her pleasure, and she’d loved it, never having felt so desired and loved before.

  A gentle knock brought her out of her thoughts, and she’d opened the door to Mark on the other side.

  He dropped a quick kiss on her lips.

  “Sure you don’t want to join me?”

  Warmth flooded her cheeks as she blushed “Thank you. Any more water on my skin and I turn into a prune.”

  Laughing softly, he shook his head and started to get undressed. She closed the door behind her and stepped to the window, enjoying the view. It was dark outside, but the moon was full, and its reflection on the water was captivating. As she stared out the window, a calm overcame her as she heard the water from Mark’s shower. For the first time in years, she felt safe, secure, and at ease with herself and her life. She had found out so much that past week, found the pieces of a puzzle she never started, which looked so beautiful now that it was completed. And Mia, who had always been the frame of the puzzle, fitted in superbly as well. One day, Sophie would tell her about her father. At that moment, she hoped Mark could fill part of those shoes.

  She slipped into her nighty, then went to check on Mia one last time before she slid underneath the silk duvet, and moved her hand over the second pillow. The pillow where Mark was going to sleep, right next to her. Keeping her warm, and keeping her loved. Trying hard to not let that moment go, she finally gave in anyway, and closed her eyes to sleep.

  ****

  When Mark stepped back into the bedroom only a few minutes later, he shook his head as he gazed down at his bed with Sophie in it. He couldn’t get enough of her. Her face with a little smile on her lips — even in her sleep. Her gentle breathing. Her hand underneath her cheek.

  Choking back a little laugh, he stepped closer and sat on the edge of the bed. He opened the top drawer of the bedside table and retrieved a small box. With a flick of this thumb, the box opened to reveal a sapphire ring. He admired it for a moment and although disappointed that he’d have to wait another day, a new smile tugged at his lips hoping what the rest of his life might have in stall. Yes, it was fast, but he was sure. As sure as he had ever been before.

  She stirred in his bed, and he lifted the duvet and lay beside her then wrapped one arm around her. With the other arm, he placed the box back into the drawer… Tomorrow, he thought, and drifted off into a contented sleep, from which he would awake with his girl in his arms.

  Other Books by this Author

  More Beginnings

  (coming soon)

  Zach Taylor, an escort in Sydney, living in Hobart, enlists the help of Natasha Peterson when his teenage friend, Mia, runs away and finds out that the ‘dragon’ is really more of a kitten. And although Natasha, Mia’s teacher, is attracted to him as well, she has her own problems to deal with, not to mention her initial reaction to Zach’s occupation.

  Will Zach’s job keep him from a chance to be with Natasha?

  Life is good for the new teenaged Mia Levesque. But when Darren Schuster shows up in Hobart, she knows something is up once Sophie and Mark cut their weekend away short and rush home in the middle of the night. When Sophie won’t answer Mia’s questions, emotions run high, and Zach confirms Darren’s identity to Mia. Disappointed, angry, and feeling alone, Mia runs away.

  Will life settle back into a routine for Mia once she finds out about the stranger in her life?

  Distant Beginnings

  (coming soon)

  The small town of Hobart in Tasmania has witnessed many beginnings in recent years. At yet one more beginning, the wedding of a friend, Jared Fraser decides it’s time for some fresh beginnings to come his way… And he sets out for a holiday to the US to travel along the Route 66 in a motorhome.

  Ivy Bennett thought leaving her boyfriend would be the hard part. It doesn’t take long to figure out how wrong she was. As she struggles with making a new start in her life, the last person she expects to lead her to happiness is a laid-back Australian on holiday.

  Then the arrival of family friend Mia Levesque and her boyfriend, Josh, turns Jared’s holidays upside-down when he’s forced to play arbitrator between the two teenagers.

  Little Beginnings

  A blind date that doesn’t happen might lead to love.

  After her divorce, Jeri Belmont moved to Hobart and now runs a successful art gallery. When her niece sets her up with a neighbour, Jeri expects a blind date like all the others. But she never expected her date wouldn’t even show up because of her age. Despite feeling unjustly judged, when she unexpectedly runs into him again, she finds it hard to ignore Ely’s charm.

  Ely Lennox knows he shouldn’t have skipped the blind date because of the lady’s age. After all, it had only been a date, not a lifetime commitment. When his carpentry business takes him right to the woman he bailed out on, his guilt turns into regret when he finds out she’s everything a man could hope for. How can he convince Jeri he made a big mistake?

  Will she forgive him? Or is she hiding behind something else?

  Journey to Her Dreams

  Would you travel around the world to uncover the reason for your dreams?

  Hollie Anderson, a young woman from Tasmania, lives on a farm outside Launceston, Australia. She has good looks, likes her job, and loves to hang out with her friends. But it’s a recurrent dream that throws her daily life into chaos and takes her on a journey to Ireland.

  Sam Shaughnessy enjoys the success as Head of Advertising for a popular magazine in the Irish capital Dublin. Married to Padraic, she thinks she loves her husband, but when she meets Hollie under unusual circumstances, she needs to face the truth, and not just about her marriage.

  When both women, so different in many ways, find out they have one thing in common, it changes their lives forever.

  Innocent Tears

  Becoming a parent can be daunting at the best of times, but for Flynn, a business l
awyer in Melbourne, it almost pulls the feet from right underneath him. He’s become a father to six-year-old Nadine literally overnight! He had no idea about her existence, and the news throws him into chaos, even more so when he is asked to take over custody.

  With the help of Emma, an employee at the hotel where Nadine and her grandparents are staying, and his parents, Flynn tries to do the right thing. Yet, the right thing in his eyes differs from his parents’, and Emma is voicing her opinion as well. And right in the middle is little Nadine, still grieving the loss of her mother and finding a wonderful friend in Emma. There’s no doubt she’s afraid where and with whom she will settle.

  But in the end, it’s a letter Flynn receives that helps him figuring out what to do.

  Love Will Find You

  Can their new love survive the scrutiny of the public eye?

  After his father’s heart attack, Australian Football League player Tyson Gaspaldi takes his parents on holiday to a small place at the New South Wales coast.

  One morning, following a surfing session, he comes across a crying woman on the beach. Everything about her intrigues him, and he can’t walk away. She’s not only sexy and humble, but, as he soon finds out, vulnerable as well.

  It’s only been a few months since Katie Cassidy lost her sister in a car accident.

  Still overwhelmed by the loss, a chance encounter on the beach with an attractive stranger awakens unexpected emotions inside her. She’s instantly drawn to his caring nature, but also his looks.

  However, Tyson's past quickly catches up with them, causing Katie’s childhood demons to return, and the road to romance becomes anything but smooth.

  Let Me Love You

  Oliver Dempsey, pitcher for a Melbourne baseball club, loves the women, and they love him...

  But he keeps them at an arm's length, and when he meets Tamara, he’s unprepared for the attraction he feels for her. Told by his coach that she’s off limits, only draws him in more.

  Tamara Amis moved to Melbourne to find some distance between her past and herself...

  With the help of her uncle, the coach of a Melbourne baseball club, she quickly finds a job, and a place to live. Yet, one meeting with the handsome pitcher stirs unexpected emotions that threaten to overwhelm her.

  It's Oliver’s injury that brings them together, but as they find out about each other's pasts, how can they be ready to share a future?

  I Think I Love You

  Markus DeLeon and Sarah Winter’s lives couldn’t be more different…

  After three years away as the goalkeeper for an English soccer club, Markus has been happy to be back in Australia. He’d missed his family and friends, including Sarah. He’s known her since childhood, and often protected her from the teasing of other children and the troubling consequences of a broken home.

  When they attend their friends’ wedding, a new light is cast on their friendship…

  Sarah is fresh out of a bad relationship, and Markus has always been the one she can confide in. Maybe it’s the magic of the wedding—or how stunning he looks in a tux—but the attraction between them intensifies in ways they’d never imagined.

  But sometimes when risking what you have, you might lose everything…

  Following a passionate encounter, Markus isn’t sure how to handle this new aspect of his relationship with Sarah, and literally flees the scene for the coast. Sarah is unsure how to react to his sudden departure, but is soon knocked off course by misunderstandings and a frightening family emergency.

  Markus realises his mistake and wants to make things right, but he also faces obstacles. He’s been offered an exciting new job, and an attractive newcomer to the neighbourhood is eager to claim his attention, though the last thing Markus needs is another confusing relationship.

  Can Sarah and Markus face the fear and doubt—and the potential loss of their lifelong friendship—to give their love a chance?

  About the Author

  Iris Blobel was born and raised in Germany and immigrated to Australia in the late 1990s. Having had the travel bug most of her life, Iris spent quite some time living in Scotland and London, as well as Canada, where she met her husband.

  Her love for putting her stories onto paper emerged only recently, but now her laptop is a constant companion.

  Iris resides west of Melbourne with her husband and her beautiful two daughters as well as her dog. Next to her job at a private school, she also presents a German Program at the local Community Radio.

  Questions or comments? Find Iris on the following social networks:

  Iris’ Website

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  Follow her on Twitter, Bookbub, and/or Goodreads

  Acknowledgements

  My first selfpublished story since my very first book so many years ago. Exciting and terrifying as well.

  Thank you to my readers. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you. I’m humbled by your support and feedback.

  My beautiful daughters, Carleigh and Tara, for keeping me on my toes, making me smile every day, sharing a laugh with me, and so much more. I’m so grateful to have you in my life.

  And to my husband, who steps up when I have to step down. Thank you!

  Big thanks to Kay, my editor, for helping making this book shine. Thanks to Emilia for the proofread. And Forthemusedesign.com for a brilliant cover. No words can express my appreciation.